Man hit in head by airplane propeller

A man attempting to hand-crank a Piper Cherokee aircraft at Gillespie Field in El Cajon was struck in the head by the propeller Monday and rushed to a hospital in serious condition, officials said.

The man, whose name was not released, was attempting to start the airplane about 8:30 a.m. at the airport run by San Diego County when the accident occured, said Michael Drake, a spokesman for the county Department of Public Works.

The plane is a single-engine, four-seat aircraft.  The man's condition was unknown.

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-- Tony Perry in San Diego

Photo: Authorities work at the scene where a man was hit in the head by an airplane propeller. Credit: Fox 5 San Diego